{Product Feature} Koppie Boeretroos…A Hug in a Cup

Ah, coffee. The modern girl’s elixir. The stuff surging careers and moms with both eyes open are made of. It seems unfair to rob little people of it. It just seems unfair. I’m not saying they shouldn’t be robbed. Rob away. Little ones have no business playing with caffeine. Then, we’d have to share ours with them.

But, when I discovered Boeretroos on Facebook, the conflicting worlds of littlies and coffee merged together in one glorious mocha-scented moment. Here it is: personalised mini cups and saucers for the offspring of caffeine moms. Still, please don’t give your kids coffee, guys. These are for baby-chinos and hot chocolates. The cuteness is just too much. So, I promptly ordered mine.

This is the cup I ordered for a tea-loving friend that is expecting her first. I loved the attention to detail and the arty flair.

Here’s more about Boeretroos:

How did you start? What was your motivation?

I always loved drawing. After a gap year as an au pair in Germany, I did the responsible thing and studied applied design & illustration (BAFA).

Then, I fell in love, finished my degree, got married and started freelancing, which developed into a full-time job at my own little studio called Letter Chef. A few years later, Anria was born. All of a sudden, my long, indulgent tea breaks whenever I wanted turned into a slurping tea out of very tiny teacup sets with her every morning. I had a few problems with this scenario. Her tea sets don’t have a teapot big enough for my bag, and the cups are minuscule (even for her). But, I wasn’t willing to give up on drinking tea with my toddler. My mom held firmly to the belief that a cup of tea can solve some of the world’s biggest problems.

Then, when Anria was 15 months old, she discovered the joy of a baby-chino – an espresso cup filled with foamed milk. So, the search began for a pretty espresso cup that would appeal to a little girl. There were some, but nothing inspiring. I went to what I know. I found plain white cups with saucers and began experimenting on them with my own doodles and designs.

“After giving a few away as birthday presents, the requests for ‘grown up girls’ in need of a pretty cup started rolling in. It turns out that there are many people in need of a Hug in a Cup …. of, sal ons sê ‘n klein koppie boeretroos,” says Elizna, the name behind the brand.

What is your product?
Unique, hand-illustrated baby-chino cups.

What makes it special / unique / useful?It is a hand-illustrated, small ‘big person’ cup with a personalised picture, message, or both.

How does it benefit busy moms?
We encourage ‘tea time’ with your kids….tea time is bonding time, who wouldn’t want to drink from that special cup everyday?

Where would you like to see your company going in the near future?At the moment, I still have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming – Koppie Boeretroos is only a few months old, and performing well above any expectations…we are testing the waters and hope to better a few lives along the way…

How are you planning to get there?
Prayer and work hard…

To order your mugs, contact Elizna at boeretroos@letterchef.co.za or on her Facebook page.